The Night
by Wink57CS
Summary: a short one-shot... True love doesn't last for long...it lasts forever.


I was having the dreams again. I was in a world of red, a feeling of trepidation winding through my chest. There were evil things about to happen, things that I had no knowledge of yet somehow _knew._ Noises assaulted my ears, noises of battle, of pain, of death. I saw a mountain erupt and a valley crack open. The ground was full of rifts and canyons, and I had to fly away with my wings to avoid falling to my doom. Yet in the air I was besieged too, and as an arrow pierced my wing I could feel myself falling down, down, down…and then nothing.

            I stand on my balcony, looking at the glorious Mystic Moon, shining bright and clear, illuminating everything with a brilliance that came close to the sun's own light. I let out a weary breath.

            It was the same dream every time, and only happened when I was nervous, or worried. My eldest son was fulfilling the Rite of Succession tonight, and somehow I knew my worries should not exist, for I had taught him well, as had Allen, the one I chose to instruct my children in the ways of the sword.

            Still, my concern remained. I remembered when I had fulfilled the Rite myself, and that night stood out in my mind in so many ways. It was the night I spilled my first blood. The night I took my first few steps towards becoming the man I am today.

            The night I met Hitomi.

            It was years ago, yet to my heart if feels almost as if it were yesterday. The way she smiled, the way she said my name… To me, nothing could be more perfect than her. Oh, she wasn't that way at first…you see, I've always had this temper problem, and in my youth I was somewhat rash and unthoughtful. But I've changed. _She_ changed me.

            The years weigh heavy on my mind. Years of war, years of reconstruction, years of peace. I moved on, of course, once Dornkirk was defeated and Hitomi returned to her world. I married, as any good king should, to a beautiful girl who has given me my sons and daughters. I saw to the rebuilding of Fanelia, and have learned to rule in as fair and just a manner as is humanly possible. In my heart was the love for my family, my friends, and my kingdom. Yet, always, there was a part of my heart that loved Hitomi.

            Don't get me wrong; I truly did love my wife, Yurina. Her beautiful blue eyes and black hair were only part of the reason I loved her. She was the sunshine when I couldn't bear my loneliness any longer, and she was everything and anything a man could ask for. As I look up at the sky, I murmur an endearment to her, as if her soul were entrapped in the luminescent orbs that dotted the dark of night. I missed her terribly.

            She had died in childbirth to our youngest son, Aven. I remembered that day…a feeling of hopelessness and loneliness that eclipsed any I had ever felt. The dreams had come back then, too.

            But years have passed since then. I still feel my wife's presence, whenever I walk around the castle, and I miss her cheerful laugh. But as I look to the Mystic Moon, I can't help but recall another I have missed. Another I have loved.

            I wonder how Hitomi is doing, whether she has also found love in her world. Although the thought does give me a slight pang, I know that I would rather she be happy with someone else than sad without me. Her face fills my mind, and try as I might I cannot imagine her growing older. She will always remain the same to me, young, vibrant, beautiful. Her amazing gray-green eyes still can captivate me, with just one innocent look. And as I look at her world, I wish. I wish that I could see her again; to tell her I still loved her, even though we have had to move on.

            When I was younger, I thought that I would always love her. Now that I have aged, I know it was true.

            Hitomi was my first love. And first loves last _forever_.

            I hear the sound of my son returning. He must have been victorious. Soon, I will declare him my successor, and Fanelia will prosper in the days to come.

            I can almost see a vision of the future…wheat growing golden and plentiful in the fields, the townspeople milling about the streets in peace and harmony, the grass green and the trees strong. I have taken upon the yoke of war in order that my sons may have a world of peace.

            But there is one part of my vision that I can never rid myself of. What if Hitomi were to return? What if she would be here to stand by my side, to grow old with me? What if…

            I quickly turn my thoughts away from that track. They are simply the ramblings of a foolish man who yearns for a companion. Hitomi used to make me believe in the power of my wishes, but as the years have passed, my childlike faith has diminished. 

            I drag myself wearily back into my bed, at peace now at least concerning my son. It is time to sleep, in order to wake tomorrow and continue living. As hopeless as I feel at times, I remember immediately that I will always have my children…and I will always have my memories.

            As I lay in my bed, alone, my mind begins to fade as I succumb to the result of a long day's work. Just before the blackness descended, I whisper uselessly, "I wish Hitomi would return to stay."

            I awake in the morning to a glorious sunrise, and for some reason I feel completely rested and renewed despite my late-night musings. As I sit up in bed, a shadow falls across me and with sudden suspicion I draw away.

            "Who's there?" I mumble, my sleep slurring my speech.

            Wordlessly, the intruder touches my face with a gentle hand. A woman's hand. She tilts my jaw up, and kisses me tenderly. A kiss that I had never experienced before, yet it was sweet and pure and everything I could need. It feels familiar somehow, but I can't figure out why until I open my eyes.

            I can feel my chest pounding and I can't breathe. I look upon the person who is in my room, and I feel an uncharacteristic, befuddled smile spread across my face. I try to speak, and with a bizarre sense of peace I am content with the one word I can say.

            "Hitomi!"


End file.
